Roy Lang's Sea & Sky in Oils: Painting the Atmosphere and Majesty of the Sea

March 07

Books on painting water appear from time to time, but ones totally devoted to the sea are by no means common. In fact, I can only immediately think of the ones by E John Robinson. As many readers will be aware, books on oil painting also tend to be conspicuous by their absence, so this one neatly fills two gaps at once.

So, it's got a lot riding on it. If I have a reservation, it's that Roy tends to go for the over-dramatic. It's entirely understandable that he doesn't really want to paint flat calm waters, although that could well be what you'd find in a broader, more general seascape, but I'm not completely sure that we need, or will find useful, quite the proportion of night-time and storm scenes he includes. As paintings, they're impressive but, as teaching exercises, maybe a tad indulgent.

I don't think this is something that should automatically put you off, but you do need to be aware of it as this book isn't going to be everyone's cup of tea. That's a shame, because Roy crams an awful lot into just 64 pages - Search Press have become particularly good at making the maximum use of page space without overcrowding - and it's worth persevering and seeing past what may, at first sight, appear to be objections because Roy is a good and helpful teacher and includes some excellently detailed step by step demonstrations.

As a book on painting the sea in oils, this doesn't really have any competition and, all things being equal, it probably won't have for some time to come so, if this is what you want to do, then this is the book you're going to need. Does that mean you're stuck with Hobson's Choice? Well, no, not really because it's well done and you will undoubtedly get a lot out of it, especially if it's a subject you're new to. Yes, there are a few pictures that you might pass over, but the rest of the book is sound and excellent value for money.

May 07

How refreshing to find a book written by a man who insists that he is not an artist, and who dropped out of art at school. No art school training or prestigious career in art for him! Mr Lang did not return to art until his thirties, and is surely an inspiration for all of us who are doomed to exist in an expert culture . He has even made his brush holder, mahl stick and palette and describes the nine - only nine! - colors he uses for his excellent paintings. Maybe you don't need to take out a second mortgage to take up art then?

You do need to understand the basics however and this book makes a good go at doing this. Much is made of tone and how it works, how this can make or mar a painting and some examples of right and wrong. Learn how to paint the different textures of sky, water, sand, rocks etc and the best way to capture a good likeness quickly in situ. There are studies to work through yourself with plenty of useful staged photographs, and a general attempt to get under the skin of a demanding subject. This is not a primer for those unused to the medium - there are plenty of other books for that and I recommend Michael Sanders' Painting With Oils (also reviewed on this site). If you are reasonably au fait with oils and fancy having a go at this type of painting then this is a useful book with an eye to not overspending, as well as a comforting lack of professional superiority.